Fighting Against Time Management With Oliver Burkeman

The Gartner Talent Angle

Employees and leaders frequently grapple with the challenge of insufficient time. This scarcity often serves as a legitimate rationale for incomplete tasks and unmet objectives at work, prompting employees to explore various time management strategies and tools.

Oliver Burkeman, acclaimed author of the New York Times bestseller "Four Thousand Weeks" and "Meditation for Mortals," offers a contrarian viewpoint on the Talent Angle podcast. Oliver suggests that time management is inherently flawed, and introduces the concept of the "efficiency trap," where increased efficiency paradoxically leads to heightened busyness, undermining the very goal of effective time management. He points out that in recognizing this paradox employees and leaders can be liberated and enabled to more effectively prioritize tasks.

Oliver Burkeman is the New York Times and UK Sunday Times bestselling author of “Four Thousand Weeks,” about embracing limitation and finally getting round to what counts, and of the newly released “Meditations for Mortals: Four Weeks to Embrace Your Limitations” and “Make Time for What Counts.” His other books are “The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking” and “Help! How to Become Slightly Happier and Get a Bit More Done”.

Caroline Walsh is a managing vice president in Gartner’s HR practice. Her teams help HR leaders build and execute talent, diversity, rewards, and learning strategies and programs. Caroline has also led Gartner research teams on commercial banking strategy and leadership. She holds a bachelor’s degree in East Asian studies from Columbia University, and a master’s degree in public affairs from Princeton University.